Modern motor vehicles are generally equipped with brake systems that carry out an automatic braking intervention in order to increase driving stability. Such systems have become known in particular under the designation ESP systems (ESP=Electronic Stability Program), which apply a braking pressure in a targeted fashion to one or more wheels of a motor vehicle using corresponding wheel brakes in order for example to prevent pulling of the motor vehicle. Conventionally, for this purpose, braking interventions for stabilization are carried out both on the front axle and on the rear axle. Generally, two wheel brakes are allocated to a hydraulic circuit, for example a wheel brake of a front axle and a wheel brake of a rear wheel axle. Conventionally, the automatic braking intervention for increasing driving stability is intended to actuate only one of the wheel brakes. Therefore, it is provided that the inlet valve of the wheel brake that is not to be actuated is closed, so that the pressure produced by the hydraulic pump does not act thereon. Conventionally, a corresponding hydraulic pre-pressure sensor is provided that acquires the pressure produced in the brake system by a driver. If the pre-pressure sensor is omitted, it can no longer be ascertained whether the driver has a desire to carry out a braking that is independent of the automatic braking intervention and is intended to be superposed on the automatic braking intervention.